IMAGE  EVALUATION 
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Microfiche 

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CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Inatituta  for  Historical  IMicroraproductiona  /  Inatitut  Canadian  da  microraproductions  historiquas 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notaa/Notaa  tachniqcas  at  bibliographiquaa 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  far  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reprcduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checlted  below. 


rri    Coloured  covers/ 
\}Lj    Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


n 


D 

D 
D 
D 
□ 


n 


Couverture  endommagie 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurie  et/ou  pelliculAe 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  giographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  Ink  (I.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couieur  (i.e.  autre  que  hieue  ou  noire) 


Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 
Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 


Bo'ind  with  other  material/ 
Reli6  avec  d'autres  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serr^e  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  inttrieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajouties 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte. 
mais,  lorsque  cela  Atait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  iti  filmAes. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  supplAmentaires: 


'■■■■"•!ii^.-"- 


L'Instltut  a  microfilm*  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  iui  a  AtA  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  biblio(jraphique.  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  Image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  methods  normele  de  filmage 
sont  indiquAs  ci-dessous. 


I     I   Coloured  pages/ 


Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  demaged/ 
Pages  endommagAes 

Pages  restored  and/oi 

Pages  restaurAes  et/ou  peilicui^es 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxei 
Pages  dAcoiories,  tachetAes  ou  piquies 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  d^tachies 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  prir 

Quality  in^gale  de  i'impression 

Includes  supplementary  materii 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplimentaire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Mition  disponible 


I      I  Pages  demaged/ 

I      I  Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

ryl  Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 

I     I  Pages  detached/ 

r^  Showthrough/ 

I      I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

I     I  Includes  supplementary  material/ 

j — I  Only  edition  available/ 


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to 


Tl 

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si( 
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fit 

Si( 

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Ti 

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Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc..  have  been  ref limed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata.  une  pelure, 
etc..  ont  M  fiimies  i  nouveau  de  fa9on  A 
obtenir  le  meiileure  imege  possible. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  film*  au  taux  de  reduction  indiquA  ci-dessous 

10X                           14X                           18X                           22X 

26X 

30X 

X 

12X                            16X                            20X                            24X                            28X                            32X 

The  copy  fllmad  h«r«  has  baen  raproducad  thanks 
to  tha  ganarosity  of: 

Library  of  the  Public 
Archives  of  Canada 


L'axamplaira  filmA  fut  raprodult  dcAca  A  la 
gAnArosit*  da: 

La  bibliothique  des  Archives 
publiques  du  Canada 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  In  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  Mpacifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  Illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  Impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


Lee  images  suivantes  ont  AtA  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  at 
da  la  nettetA  de  I'exemplaira  film*,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  Imprimte  sont  filmAs  en  commen^ant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
darnMre  page  qui  comporte  une  emprelnte 
d'impression  ou  d'lllustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  let>  eutres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmte  en  commen^ant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  emprelnte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustratlon  et  en  terminant  par 
la  darnlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
emprelnte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  — ^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  ▼  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


\Jn  des  symboles  suivants  apparnttra  .<ur  la 
darnlAre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  sslon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — ^  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  dtre 
filmte  A  des  taux  de  reduction  difftrents. 
Lcrsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  ciichA,  11  est  film*  A  partir 
de  Tangle  sup6rieur  geuche,  de  gauche  d  dtoite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nAcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


1 

2 

3 

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2 

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4 

5 

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^HISTORY,   CHARACTER,   A  N  D  f  0  S I T 1 0  M.  .^ 


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ZZHtli  a  iJoitrnft 


NEW-YORK: 

HARPER  &  bR0THEKS.£2  CLIFF-STREET. 


184  3. 


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■'  .  r-ifiii  fT'.,  r-''^  '  .1^:1-   -  r^r,  i-yt.- 


^m. 


CHEAi  LITERATURE 


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FREPARING  FOR  IMMEDIATE  PUBLICATION 


By  Harper  &  Brothers,  82  Cliff-street. 


--»..•  •■'',-■,'^1" '  - 

SHAKSPEARE.  J;HE  BEST  AND  ONLY  COMPLETE  EDITION.    Th« 

Dramatic  Works  a^^oems  of  William  Shakspeare,  with  Notes,  Original  and  Selected,  and 
Introductory  Remarks  to  each  Play,  by  Samuel  Weller  Singer,  F.S.A.,  and  a  Life  of  the 
Poet  by  Charles  Symmons,  D.D.  Illusti  ned  by  Nineteen  Splendid  Engravings  on  Steel. 
This  Work  will  be  issued  complete  in  Eight  Nuoibers,  of  nearly  160  octavo  pages,  with  all 
the  Engravings,  at  Twenty-five  Cents  each.         ...  ^ 

II.    "  '  ■       ^   ''■"'■■'■        ■  ^-^ 

1  RAVELS  IN  EGYPT,  ARABIA  PETR^EA,  AND  THE  HOLY  LAND. 

By  the  Rev.  Stephen  Olin,  D.D.,  President  of  the  Weslejran  Universi^.  In  3  vols,  small 
8vo  With  Illustrations  on  Steel.  To  be  published  in  Twelve  Weekly  Numbers,  with  an 
Elegant  Steel  Engraving  to  each,  at  Twenty-five  Cents.  The  first  Number  will  be  issued 
in  March,  and  will  be  for  sale  by  all  the  Booksellers  and  Periodical  Agents. 

III. 

HISTORY  OF  EUROPE,  from  the  Commencement  of  the  French  Revolution 
in  1789  to  the  Restoratiori  of  the  Bourbons  in  1815.  By  Archibald  Alison,  F.R.S.E.,  Advo* 
cate.    Now^  publishing  in  Sixteen  Numbers,  at  Twenty-five  Cents  each. 

AN  ENCYCLOPAEDIA  OF  SCIENCE,  LITERATLUE,  AND  ART.    Com- 

prising  the  History,  Description,  and  Scientific  Principles  of  every  Branch  of  Human  Knowl 
edge ;  with  the  Derivation  and  Definition  of  all  the  Terms  in  Use.    Illustrated  by  Engra* 
Tings  on  Wood.    General  Editor,  W.  T.  Brande,  P.R  S.L.  &  E  ,  of  her  Majesty's  Mint ; 
Professor  of  Chemistry  and  Materia  Medica  in  the  Apothecaries'  Company,  dus.    Now  Pub- 
Ushing  in  Twelve  Numbers,  at  Twenty-five  Cents  each.       :   .      .  ,  ,  «  ^ 

THE  FAMILY  LIBRARY,  numbering  157  volumes,  will  be  issued  entint,  one 
volume  weekly,  at  TwENTv-rivs  Cbnts  a  Voldmb  !  just  half  the  price  they  have  been  sold 
at  heretofore,  and  then  decidedly  the  cheapest  books  in  the  market.  The  first  number,  being 
Vol.  I.  of  Milman's  IIistoey  of  the  Jews,  will  appear  in  March.  These  volumes  will  be 
lUuBtraled  and  Embellished  with  Numorous  Engravings,  as  in  the  previous  editions,  printed 
on  paper  equally  good,  and  bound  in  fhncy  French  covers. 


^ 


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VI. 


:*CULLOCH'S   UNIVERSAL   GAZETTEER;    OR,  GEOGRAPHICAL 

DICTIONARY.  With  Seven  Maps  on  SteeL  A  Dictionary,  Geographical,  Statistical,  and 
Historical,  of  th.^  various  Countries,  Places,  and  principal  Natural  Objects  in  the  WorUL 
By  J.  R.  M'GuUoch,  Esq.  In  two  Volumes,  8vo.  In  which  the  articles  relating  to  the  Uni- 
ted States  will  be  re- written  and  greatly  multiplied  and  extended,  and  adapted  to  the  present 
condition  of  the  country,  and  to  the  wants  of  its  citizens.  By  Daniel  Haskel,  £i..vL.,  late 
Resident  of  the  University  of  Vermont.  To  be  cqmpleted  in  18  or  20  Numbers,  at  36  Cents 
each.  The  first  Number  to  appear  in  April  A  Nomber  wiU  af  pear  on  the  ist  and  16tii  of 
each  month. 

vn.  ^ 

HOBOKEN.    A  ROMANCE  OF  NEW-YORK.    By  Theo.  S.  Fay,  author  of 
" Norman  L^plie,"  Ac.  ^  j' 

*  vin. 

THE  LIFE  AND  ADVENTURES  OF  MARTIN  CKUZZI^WTT.    Br 

Charles  Dickens.  This  work  will  be  issued  in  flNlitn  Parts,  aaek  Part  eontaiaing  thrM 
Numbers  of  the  English  edition  and  two  Ststt  KtAinM  at  •!  OaitL  aalBbtt  OM  Mst  of  tte 
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JOHN  TYLER: 


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HISTORY,  CHARACTER,  AND  POSITION. 


WITH  A  PORTRAIT. 


NEW-YORK: 
HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  82  CLIFF-HTR  EET. 

1843. 


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JOHN    TYLER. 


The  primary  object  of  this  publication  is  to  re- 
pel the  calumny  which  has  been  heaped  upon  John 
Tyler,  and  to  disabuse  the  public  mind  in  reference 
to  his  character,  history,  and  position— his  aims,  and 
the  purposes  of  his  administration.  Up  to  the  period 
when  Mr.  Clay  arrayed  the  majority  of  ll.'3  twenty- 
seventh  Congress  against  President  Tyler,  the  pub- 
lic career  of  no  eminent  man  in  the  nation  had 
commanded  respect  more  universal,  or  admiration 
more  uniform  and  sincere.  Consistent  in  every  act 
of  his  life,  devoted  to  those  sound  republican  doc- 
trines which  have  ever  been  cherished  by  the  de- 
mocracy of  Virginia,  unambitious  except  to  pro- 
mote the  good  of  his  country,  he  has  illustrated  all 
the  virtues  which  can  dignify  and  adorn  the  char- 
acter of  an  American  statesman.  When  called  by 
an  act  of  Pivuidence  to  the  executive  chair,  he  car- 
ried with  him  those  principles  which  had  been  the 
guide  of  his  life,  and  an  unalterable  purpose  to  ad- 
niinister  the  government  in  strict  conformity  with 
their  spiri|;  and  tendency. 

But  how  were  his  patriotic  intentions  met  by  the 
party  which  had  placed  him  in  power  I 


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Sustaining  cordially  every  principle  which  he 
avowed  before  the  election,  he  has,  in  return,  receiv- 
ed no  support  from  that  party  since  that  event. 
Unchanged  in  a  single  sentiment,  he  has  been  treat- 
ed as  a  traitor.     Animated  by  the  most  sincere  de- 
votion to  the  welfare  of  his  country,  he  has  been 
thwarted  in  every  measure  for  that  object.    Anxious 
to  relieve  the  public  distress,  his  plans  have  been 
consigned  to  the  undisturbed  dust  of  committee- 
rooms.     Ready  to  co-operate  with  the  co-ordinate 
branches  of  the  government  in  making  laws  requi- 
red for  the  public  service,  he  has  had  those  laws 
thrust  upon  him  in  unnecessary  connexion  with 
provisions  that  contravene  his  sense  of  duty.     Ear- 
nestly pressing  upon  Congress  for  action  upon  the 
great  subjects  that  interest  the  people,  he  was  met 
either  by  a  spirit  of  indifference,  or  a  fixed  determi- 
nation to  exert  that  action  in  such  a  way  only  as  to 
leave  no  alternative  but  disapprobation,  or  an  open 
departure  from  the  known  principles  of  his  conduct 
through  life.     Vetoes  have  been  courted  by  clauses 
and  provisos  not  required  by  the  object  of  the  meas- 
ure in  hand,  and  net  demanded  by  the  people;  and 
bills  were  studiously  framed  in  known  hostility  to 
opinions  avowed  both  by  himself  and  General  Har- 
rison before  their  election  to  office,  and  passed  un- 
der all  the  solemnities  of  legislation,  in  order  that,  if 
approved,  he  might  be  accused  of  inconsistency,  or, 
if  disapproved,  he  might  be  charged  with  defeating  a 
favourite  measure  of  the  people.    Congress  was  first 


trained  into  a  general  burst  of  indignation,  decide 
which  way  he  would ;  and  an  affiliated  press  was 
ready  to  take  up  the  cry,  and  sound  its  fiendish  yells 
from  one  end  of  the  Union  to  the  other.     The  po- 
htical  annals  of  the  country  furnish  no  parallel  to 
the  abuse  heaped  upon  President  Tyler,  in  point  of 
coarseness,  malignity,  and  habitual  disregard  of  de- 
cency, and  the  ordinary  courtesies  and  proprieties 
of  society,  both  in  Congress  and  by  a  large  portion 
of  the  Whig  press.     Every  opprobrious  epithet  in 
the  copious  vocabulary  of  the  ribald  orators  and  wri- 
ters has  been  applied  to  him  in  the  most  unsparing 
manner.      There   has  been,  especially,  a  min{j;led 
coarseness  and  cordiality  in  the  vituperation  of  Con- 
gress, that  betoken  the  earnestness  of  the  assailants, 
and  the  depth  from  which  such  muddy  waters  were 
drawn.     He  has  been  ruthlessly  charged  with  hy- 
pocrisy, treachery,  feebleness,  imbecility — with  aban- 
doning his  party  and  betraying  his  friends.     This 
avalanche  of  abuse  has  been  cast  upon  President  Ty- 
ler merely  because  he  has  refused  his  sanction  to 
bills  ostensibly  introduced  for  popular  and  desirable 
objects,  but  into  which  clauses  have  been  purposely 
thrust  which  are  not  required  by  their  spirit,  but 
which  directly  violate  the  avowed  opinions  upon 
which  both  he  and  President  Harrison  came  into 
office  ;  and  the  history  of  these  trans'^ctions  resting 
almost  solely  with  a  venal  press  interested  to  give 
them  a  false  colouring,  and  the  distinguished  object 
i]f  these  base  slanders  being  himself  excluded,  by  his 


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position,  from  the  privilege  of  self-defence,  the  peo- 
ple of  the  United  States,  ever  generous  to  the  perse- 
cuted, and  ever  true  to  the  right  when  fully  under- 
stood, have  been  generally  misled  by  the  grossest 
misrepresentations. 

Upon  this  statement  of  facts,  the  question  natu- 
rally arises,  What  adequate  motive  could  exist  for 
such  flagrant  injustice?  Why  should  the  chief 
magistrate,  fresh  from  the  hands  of  the  people  that 
made  him,  the  very  form  and  pressure  of  the  time, 
the  direct  concentrated  expression  of  the  popular 
w^ill,  ere  he  had  scarcely  doffed  the  candidate's  robes, 
be  thus  badgered  upon  questions  concerning  which 
he  had  a  right  to  consider  that  the  people  had  de- 
cided by  electing  him,  and  forced  into  an  attitude  of 
hostility  to  measures  which  he,  as  well  as  their  pro- 
jectors, wished  to  be  carried  for  the  good  of  the  coun- 
try, for  the  evident  purpose  of  casting  upon  him  the 
odium  of  their  defeat  ?  Why,  after  entreating  them 
all  frankly  on  the  score  of  old  friendship,  and  some 
of  them  pointedly  on  the  score  of  past  favours,  not 
to  imbody  in  the  Bank  Bill  any  of  the  objectionable 
features  which  he  could  not  approve  without  incon- 
sistency with  the  whole  tenour  of  his  past  life,  and 
which,  having  been  so  recently  submitted  to  the  peo- 
ple, he  had  a  right  to  consider,  by  his  election,  had 
been  repudiated  by  them — why,  after  the  most  inde- 
fatigable efforts  to  conciliate  the  conflicting  views 
of  different  individuals  on  this  subject,  and  suggest- 
ing a  plan  of  a  Bank  which  would  have  answer- 


I 


I 


ed  confessedly  every  important  purpose,  and  which, 
being  within  the  limits  of  the  strictest  construction 
of  the  Constitution,  would  have  inspired  public  con- 
fidence, by  its  permanence,  its  unquestioned  priv- 
ileges, and  its  adaptation  to  the  exigencies  of  the 
times — wh}',  after  all  this,  and  many  more  proposals 
and  concessions  were  made,  evincing  the  most  be- 
nevolent and  conciliatory  spirit,  and  the  most  sin- 
cere and  fervent  devotion  to  the  public  good  on  the 
part  of  President  Tyler,  did  the  majority  in  Con- 
gress uniformly  and  pertinaciously  refuse  to  present 
for  his  approval  any  Bank  Bill  that  did  not  contain 
provisions  that  they  knew  he  could  not  consistent- 
ly sanction  ?  Why  thus  stab  the  measures  they  pro- 
fessed to  love  ?  Why  thus  insist  on  powers  being 
conferred  by  that  bill  which  they  knew  that  Pres- 
ident Tyler  and  President  Harrison  both  had  de- 
clared to  be  unconstitutional  before  their  election, 
and  which  the  people,  by  electing  them,  had  declared 
to  be  unconstitutional  also  !  The  answer  to  these 
startling  questions  is  found  in  the  new  and  unexpect- 
ed relations  created  among  the  aspirants  to  the  pres- 
idency, by  the  constitutional  succession  of  Mr.  Tyler 
to  that  exalted  position.  General  Harrison  was  pledg- 
ed to  but  one  term  of  service,  and,  during  his  ad- 
ministration, Mr.  Clay  had  relied  upon  the  official 
patronage  of  the  government  being  devoted  to  the 
promotion  of  his  election.  Whether  the  ambitious 
views  of  Mr.  Clay  would  have  been  favoured  by 
General  Harrison,  if  he  had  lived,  to  the  injury  of 


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other  equally  eminent  and  meritorious  competitors, 
need  not  now  be  discussed ;  suffice  it  to  say,  that 
President  Tyler,  upon  his  accession  to  the  office, 
did  not  deem  it  his  duty  to  show  any  such  partial- 
ity, nor  did  he  consider  it  becoming  in  him,  being 
under  no  pledges  on  the  subject,  and  occupying  his 
position  only  as  a  substitute  to  another,  to  forestall 
the  popular  will  by  consenting  or  declining  to  be  a 
candidate  hereafter,  and  for  the  first  time,  in  reality, 
for  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States.  The  mo- 
ment this  aspect  of  things  was  exhibited,  and  Mr. 
Clay  discovered  that  President  Tyler  would  not  se- 
lect him,  as  he  would  not  any  one,  from  the  several 
distinguished  aspirants,  as  his  favourite  candidate  for 
the  Presidential  chair,  the  senator  from  Kentucky, 
possessing  the  personal  devotion  of  a  large  portion 
of  the  majority  in  Congress,  and  frightening  the  rest 
into  his  projects  by  his  control  over  measures  deem- 
ed for  the  public  interest,  assumed  an  absolute  dic- 
tatorship in  that  body  ;  forced  into  the  Bank  Bill,  in 
every  form  in  which  it  was  presented,  the  objection- 
able features  alluded  to  ;  instilled  with  his  own  hand 
the  fatal  poison  that  he  knew  must  kill  what  he  pro- 
fessed to  love,  and  ruthlessly  prolonged  the  agonies 
of  public  distress,  rather  than  that  President  Tyler 
should  be  honourably  and  consistently  placed  in  a 
situation  to  participate  in  the  slightest  degree  in  the 
credit  of  relieving  it. 

These  facts  we  propose  to  demonstrate ;  but  we 
will,  in  the  first  place,  inquire  who  and  what  is  Presi- 


^ 


9 

dent  Tyler,  against  whom  such  a  bitter  malignity  has 
been  manifested,  and  such  a  foul  conspiracy  formed. 
John  Tyler,  President  of  the  United  States,  was 
born  March  29, 1790,  in  the  county  of  Charles  City, 
and  State  of  Virginia ;  was  educated  at  William 
and  Mary  College ;  finished  his  study  of  law  under 
the  direction  of  the  celebrated  Edmund  Randolph  ; 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1809,  in  the  nineteenth 
year  of  his  age,  and  was  elected  to  the  Legislature, 
by  the  almost  unanimous  vote  of  his  native  county, 
in  1811,  when  he  attained  his  twenty-first  year. 
He  was  successively  elected,  with  equal  equanimity, 
to  the  Legislature  until  the  winter  of  1815-16,  when, 
by  joint-ballot  of  the  Legislature,  and  with  the  loss 
of  only  fifteen  votes  in  the  two  houses,  consisting 
of  two  hundred  and  forty-two  members,  he  was 
chosen  a  member  of  the  Privy  Council  of  State.  In 
the  fall  of  1816  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States,  from 
the  Richmond  district,  and  continued  to  serve  in 
that  house  until  the  year  1821,  when,  by  reason  of 
'"  health,  he  declined  a  re-election.  In  1823  he 
wan  again  elected  to  the  Legislature  of  Virginia  by 
the  citizens  of  his  native  county,  and  served  till  the 
winter  of  1825,  when  he  was  chosen  Governor  of 
Virginia  for  one  year,  and  in  1826  he  was  re-elect- 
ed to  the  same  office  by  a  unanimous  vote.  Early 
in  the  year  1827  he  was  chosen  a  senator  in  Con- 
gress, and  was  re-elected  to  that  elevated  station  in 
1833,  and  continued  to  serve  until  1836 ;  during 

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which  time  he  was  elected  President  pro  tern,  of  the 
Senate,  when,  in  consequence  of  his  being  unable  to 
reconcile  certain  instructions  of  the  Legislature  then 
given  to  his  sense  of  constitutional  obligation,  he  re- 
signed three  unexpired  years  of  his  term,  and  went 
into  retirement,  in  which  he  remained  until  elected 
Vice-president  of  the  United  States  in  1840,  with  the 
exception  of  one  session's  service  in  the  Legislature 
in  1 838,  from  the  county  of  James  City.  He  was  run 
as  Vice-president  on  the  Harrison  ticket  in  1836,  and 
also  on  that  of  Judge  White.  He  was  inaugurated 
on  the  4th  of  March,  1841,  into  the  Vice-presidency, 
and  upon  the  death  of  General  Harrison,  on  the  4th 
of  April  following,  he  succeeded  to  the  Presidency, 
by  virtue  of  the  provisions  of  the  Constitution.  Thus 
it  will  be  seen  that  he  has  enjoyed  the  singular  hon- 
our of  having  had  conferred  upon  him  every  politi- 
cal office  in  the  gift  of  the  people  of  his  native  state, 
and,  what  is  quite  as  much  to  his  credit,  he  never 
sought  any  of  the  stations  to  which  he  has  been  so 
honourably  elevated.  It  is  also  to  be  observed,  that 
he  has  never  owed  his  stations  to  executive  appoint- 
ments, but  uniformly  to  the  people  di'ect. 

Having  thus  given  a  brief  sketch  of  his  life,  let  us 
take  a  cursory  review  of  his  character,  conduct,  an'^ 
opinions. 

Kindness  of  heart,  gentleness  of  disposition,  and 
nobleness  of  nature  have  been  his  distinguishing 
characteristics  throughout  his  whole  life.  As  a  boy 
at  school,  lie  was  the  favourite  of  his  playmates ;  as 
a  young  lawyer  in  practice,  he  was  proverbially  the 


I 


11 


friend  of  the  unfortunate,  and  choosing  always  the 
side  of  the  friendless  and  the  accused,  he  was  uni- 
versally recognised  as  their  standing  advocate ;  pos- 
sessing, as  a  speaker,  great  power  over  the  emotions 
of  the  heart,  he  was  almost  universally  successful  in 
his  philanthropic  exertions.  As  a  legislator,  he  was 
the  enemy  of  oppression,  and  was  always  foremost 
in  demanding  that  most  difficult  of  all  things  to  get 
at  the  hands  of  government,  private  justice ;  and,  as 
in  the  case  of  Douthat,  he  was  uniformly  first  in 
zeal,  and  unrivalled  in  eloquence,  in  the  cause  of  suf- 
fering humanity.  Indeed,  most  gentle,  blameless, 
and  amiable  has  been  his  private  character  through 
'i  well-spent  life ;  and  until  he  fell  under  the  dis- 
pleasure of  Mr.  Clay,  no  one  dared  to  hint  that  it 
was  otherwise. 

As  a  politician,  he  has  always  been  of  the  Demo- 
cratic school,  but  inclined  to  moderate  measures. 
Knowing  that  our  system  of  government  is  based 
upon  compromises,  he  is  not  willing  to  sap  its  found- 
ation by  tearing  one  stone  out  after  another.  Faith- 
ful to  party  so  long  as  party  is  faithful  to  the  coun- 
trv,  he  possesses  the  moral  courage  to  abandon  it 
when  wrong,  in  the  face  of  the  bitterest  slander ; 
recognising  his  obligations  to  the  popular  will,  he 
does  not  hesitate,  when  it  violates  his  sense  of  duty, 
between  that  duty  and  the  sacrifice  of  place,  power, 
and  every  consideration  of  self-interest.  When  call- 
ed upon  and  instructed  by  the  Legislature  of  Vir- 
ginia, in  1836,  to  vote  for  the  celebrated  expunging 
resolutions,  which  he  considered  as  violating  that 


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clause  in  the  Constitution  which  requires  the  Sen- 
ate "  to  keep  a  journal  of  its  proceedings,  and  to 
publish  it  from  time  to  time"  he  respectfully  refused 
to  comply,  and  resigned  three  unexpired  years  of 
his  term,  in  a  letter  to  that  Legislature  full  of  indig- 
nant eloquence.     He  says : 

"  I  should  be  afraid,  after  perfonr'r.^  such  a  deed,  if  Virginia 
is  as  she  once  was  (and  I  do  not  doubt  it),  to  return  within  her 
limits.  The  execrations  of  her  people  would  be  thundered  in 
my  ears  ;  the  soil  which  had  been  trod  by  her  heroes  and  states- 
men would  furnish  me  no  resting-place.  I  should  feel  myself 
guiltv,  most  guilty ;  and  however  I  might  succeed  in  concealing 
myself  from  the  sight  of  men,  I  could  not,  in  my  view  of  the  sub- 
ject, save  myself  from  the  upbraidings  of  my  own  perjured  con- 
science. How  could  I  return  to  mix  among  her  people,  to  share 
their  hospitality  and  kindness,  with  the  declaration  on  my  lips, 
'  I  have  violated  my  oath  of  office,  and,  sooner  than  surrender 
my  place  in  the  Senate,  have  struck  down  the  Constitution  ?' " 

Does  this  show  a  fondness  for  office  at  the  ex- 
pense of  his  conscience,  or  a  lack  of  firmness  to  do 
his  duty  under  the  most  trying  circumstances  ? 

Firm,  faithful,  and  consistent  as  a  party  politician, 
he  has  never  wanted  independence  to  differ  from 
that  party,  when  the  good  of  his  country  and  the 
dictates  of  his  conscience  required  it.  Upon  the 
occasion  of  the  assumption  of  power  by  President 
Jackson  to  appoint  a  minister  to  the  Sublime  Porte 
without  consulting  the  Senate,  Mr.  Tyler,  who  was 
then  a  friend  of  the  administration,  was  not,  like  the 
rest,  whipped  in  to  acquiesce  in  this  dangerous  stretch 
of  presidential  prerogative,  but  solemnly  protested 
against  it  in  a  speech  before  the  Senate,  in  which 
he  says : 


13 


"  Shall  I  displease  the  President  by  doing  so  ?  If  I  do,  I  can- 
not help  it.  But  I  claim  to  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  his  exam- 
ple, and  bright  and  glorious  is  that  example.  When  he  exer- 
cised his  veto  ovtf  certain  bills  during  the  last  session  of  Con- 
gress, he  had  my  most  unqualified  applause.  I  have  seen  much 
in  his  career  to  applaud.  The  patriot  who  has  shed  his  blood 
oi\tho  embattled  plain  in  behalf  of  his  country,  will  not  hesitate 
to  aj^rove  the  effort  which  is  made  to  save  the  Constitution  from 
the  effect  of  an  error  into  which  he  may  have  fallen.  He  rati- 
fies no  error  of  ours.  The  two  houses  of  Congress,  no  doubt, 
with  solemn  convictions  of  both  its  expediency  and  constitution- 
ality, pass  a  bill  which,  in  his  estimation,  infringes  on  the  Con- 
stitution :  with  Roman  firmness,  he  forbids  its  becoming  a  law. 
Shall  we  rival  this  example,  or  shall  we  be  less  faithful  to  the 
trust  confided  to  us  ?" 

"  It  is  our  duty,  Mr.  President,  under  all  circumstances,  and 
howsoever  situated,  to  be  faithful  to  the  Constitution.  Esto  per- 
pctua  should  be  the  motto  of  all  in  regard  to  that  instrument,  and 
more  emphatically  those  into  whose  hands  it  is  committed  by  the 
parties  to  the  compact  of  union.  Sir,  parties  may  succeed,  and 
will  succeed  each  other ;  stars  that  shine  with  brilliancy  to-day 
may  be  struck  from  their  spheres  to-morrow ;  convulsion  may 
follow  convulsion ;  the  battlements  may  rock  about  us,  and  the 
storm  rage  in  its  wildest  fury,  but  while  the  Constitution  is  pre- 
served inviolate,  the  liberties  of  the  country  will  be  secure. 
*When  we  are  asked  to  lay  down  the  Constitution  upon  the  shrine 
of  party,  our  answer  is,  the  price  demanded  is  too  great.  If  re- 
quired to  pass  over  its  violation  in  silence,  we  reply,  that  to  do  so 
would  be  infidelity  to  our  trust,  and  treason  to  those  who  sent  us 
here." 

Mr.  Tyler  has  on  all  occasions  shown  himself 
the  friend  of  liberty,  and  of  a  just  balance  of  all  the 
ruling  powers  of  government ;  he  has  unflinchingly 
opposed  every  assumption  of  power  not  recognised 
by  the  Constitution,  and  resisted  the  natural  ten- 


I  tf 


14 


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dency  of  one  co-ordinate  department  of  the  govern- 
ment to  trench  upon  another,  and  of  eacli  to  make 
points  with  the  rest.  When  President  Jackson  as- 
sumed to  control  the  pubUc  purse,  by  forcing  the 
removal  of  the  public  deposites  from  the  United 
States  Bank,  and  displaced  a  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  in  order  to  procure  its  accomplishment,  Mr. 
Tyler  was  among  the  first  to  raise  his  voice,  in  the 
Senate,  against  this  abuse  of  power.  Though  oppo- 
sed on  constitutional  grounds,  to  that  institution  as 
it  was  then  organized,  and  put  upon  a  committee  of 
investigation  into  its  affairs,  he  possessed  the  candour 
and  magnanimity  to  render  it  full  justice  in  his  able 
report;  and  when,  a  short  time  after,  the  subject 
above  alluded  to  came  before  the  Senate,  he  was 
not  blinded,  as  men  of  narrow  minds  would  be,  by 
his  objections  to  the  Bank,  to  the  error  of  the  Presi- 
dent, but  nobly  vindicated  its  rights,  and  clearly 
seeing  that  error,  boldly  and  indignantly  reproved 
it.  On  the  subject  of  the  Bank,  the  following  are 
his  sentiments,  delivered  on  that  occasion : 

"  Is  the  presidential  power  only  to  be  considered  dangerous 
when  he  is  at  the  head  of  an  army  ?  Patronage  is  the  sword  ' 
and  the  cannon  by  which  war  may  be  made  on  the  liberty  of  the 
human  race.  Is  power  won  only  by  armies  ?  money  is  more 
powerful  than  armed  men.  So  long  as  the  spirit  of  liberty  ex- 
ists, there  is  no  danger  from  the  last.  If  driven  from  the  plains, 
she  has  still  a  retreat  in  the  mountains.  In  their  gorges  and 
fastnesses  she  may  still  make  good  her  cause ;  and  not  until 
those  gorges  and  fastnesses  shall  be  filled  with  the  bodies  of 
the  dead,  will  her  glorious  flag  be  struck.  But  what  can  brave 
men  do  to  guard  against  the  effects  of  money  and  patronage  ? 


16 


They  work  silently,  and  almost  unseen ;  they  make  sure  their 
advances  by  corruption;  they  gradually  undermine  the  public 
virtue ;  the  match  is  then  applied,  and  the  mine  is  then  safely 
sprung,  and  the  edifice  of  human  liberty  scattered  into  atoms. 

"  I  am  against  the  Bank,  not  because  it  deals  in  exchanges  to 
the  amount  of  $250,000,000.  No,  sir :  I  should  as  soon  com- 
plain of  the  ocean  for  furnishing  facilities  of  intercommunication 
between  distant  nations,  or  of  the  ships  which  bear  the  rich 
freights  of  industry  from  our  own  to  distant  lands,  as  to  com- 
plain of  any  other  agent  employed  in  furnishing  similar  facilities 
to  the  exchanges  of  the  country.  Nor  am  I  insensible  to  the 
beneficial  influences  it  has  had  over  the  currency  of  the  coun- 
try ;  but  I  oppose  it  because  it  is  unconstitutional,  and  that  is 
reason  enough.  If  the  Constitution  authorized  its  creation,  no 
man,  with  the  experience  of  the  past,  could  well  doubt  the  pro- 
priety of  a  well-regulated  and  well-guarded  bank,  due  reference 
being  had  to  the  condition  of  the  banking  system ;  but  no  benefit, 
however  great,  should  lead  us  to  make  an  inroad  on  the  Consti- 
tution, except  by  amendment,  in  the  manner  pointed  out  by  that 
instrument ;  although  no  system  lesting  on  the  state  banks  for  its 
execution  can  be  as  well  executed  as  through  the  agency  of  the 
United  States  Bank,  yet,  sir,  I  would  prefer  to  rest  on  them  to 
acting  without  constitutional  sanction.  If  my  opinion  could  have 
any  influence  over  the  country,  my  advice  would  be,  restore  the 
deposites  and  amend  the  Constitution.  Such  amendment  is  called 
for  by  numerous  considerations.  This  contest  has  continued  long 
enough :  its  agitation  has  never  failed  to  produce  disastrous  re- 
sults ;  whatever  affects  the  currency  affects  every  interest  of 
society.  Why  shall  this  dispute  be  periodically  continued  ?  Let 
it  be  settled  in  the  one  way  or  other  by  the  states,  and  settled 
permanently.  Tho  question  of  bank  or  no  bank  has  been  always 
made  a  political  stepping-stone — ambition  seeks  to  vault  into  the 
presidential  saddle  through  its  influence.  Sir,  it  is  the  last  sub- 
ject which  ought  to  be  handed  over  to  politicians :  there  is  too 
much  of  distress  produced  by  its  agitation  ;  the  interests  of  the 
country  are  too  nearly  connected  with  the  currency  to  be  eter- 
nally made  the  subject  of  political  speculations." 


MMb. 


16 


No  fact  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Tyler  is  sascoptible  of 
clearer  proof  than  his  uniform  hostility  to  a  Bank 
of  the  United  States.  During  the  first  session  that 
he  served  in  the  Legislature  of  Virginia,  he  intro- 
duced a  resolution  censuring  Mr.  Brant  for  having 
disobeyed  the  instructions  of  a  previous  legislature 
in  voting  in  the  Senate  for  the  Bank  charter  in 
1811 ;  and  Mr.  Giles  for  having  denied  the  obliga- 
tions of  instructions.  The  resolution  was  passed 
with  some  modifications,  and  those  distinguished 
senators  never  recovered  from  the  blow. 

He  was  a  member  of  a  committee  of  the  House 
of  Representatives  appointed  to  examine  the  con- 
cerns of  the  Bank,  in  1818.  A  resolution  was  in- 
troduced into  the  house  to  repeal  its  charter ;  and 
the  following  extracts  from  Mr.  Tyler's  speech  on 
that  resolution  evince  not  only  his  firmness,  his 
conscientiousness,  and  his  integrity,  but  also  a  most 
remarkable  forecast  in  regard  to  the  subsequent  con- 
duct and  ultimate  fate  of  that  corrupt  and  unfortu- 
nate institution  : 

"  From  the  moment,"  said  Mr.  Tyler,  "  that  the  speaker 
thought  proper  to  confer  on  me  the  honour  of  an  appointment  pn 
the  committee  whose  report  is  now  imder  consideration,  up  to 
this  time,  I  have  feit  the  responsibility  of  my  situation.  It  is 
known  to  you,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  I  represent  a  district  deeply 
interested  in  the  decision  of  the  question  now  pending.  It  is 
known  to  this  cc;:.mittee  that  it  became  my  duty  to  present  a 
petition,  signed  by  many  of  my  most  respected  constituents,  the 
other  day,  to  the  house,  adverse  to  the  course  which  I  shall  pur- 
sue. I  can,  however,  sir,  look  neither  to  the  right  nor  the  left. 
My  own  personal  popularity  can  have  no  influence  over  me  when 
the  dictates  of  my  best  judgment,  and  the  obligations  of  an  oath,  re- 


st 
% 


17 


quire  of  me  a  particular  course.  Under  such  circumstances,  wheth- 
er I  sink  or  swim  on  the  tide  of  popular  favour,  is  to  me  a  matter 
of  inferior  consideration.  It  is  my  misfortune,  also,  to  follow  in 
this  debate  the  gentleman  from  South  Carolina  (Mr.  Lowndes), 
whose  views  are,  in  the  general,  most  luminous  and  correct. 
Upon  this  question  I  am  forced  to  differ  from  him.  Sir,  the  gen- 
tleman has  dwelt  upon  the  benefits  arising  from  the  Bank.  '  He 
has  presented  you  alone  the  fair  side  of  the  painting.  In  many  of 
his  views  1  concur  with  him,  but  it  becomes  us  to  examine  both 
sides  of  the  painting.  He  has  represented  this  institution  as  vi- 
tally connected  with  the  prosperity  of  the  country.  Its  destruc- 
tion is  to  bo  attended  with  the  most  fatal  consequences.  And 
are  we  come  to  this  ?  Shall  we  be  forced  to  countenance  specu- 
lation and  fraud  for  fear  of  encountering  the  evils  of  putting  down 
this  system  ?  Is  it  so  completely  interwoven  with  our  interests 
as  to  endanger  those  interests  by  its  destruction  ?  Does  this  gov- 
ernment, indeed,  rest  on  this  corporation  for  stability  and  sup- 
port ?  I  cannot  believe  it.  We  are  not  reduced  to  such  a  state 
of  degradation.  Sir,  if  the  gentleman  from  South  Carolina  had 
exerted  his  talents  for  the  purpose  of  devising  a  scheme  by  which 
we  could  have  successfully  extricated  ourselves  from  our  present 
embarrassing  situation,  I  cannot  but  think,  with  all  due  respect  to 
that  gentleman,  that  he  would  have  much  more  beneficially  em- 
ployed those  talents  than  by  the  course  he  has  thought  proper  to 
pursue.  If  the  evils  of  this  system,  as  disclosed  in  the  report 
and  testimony,  be  not  sufllicient  to  induce  us  to  direct  a  scire  fa- 
cias, in  the  name  of  Heaven,  I  demand  to  know  what  would  be 
considered  an  inducement  f 

Having  disposed  of  these  things,  Mr.  Tyler  proceeded  to  the 
subject  more  immediately  under  consideration,  "  Whether  it  be 
proper  to  issue  a  scire  facias  against  the  bank  ;"  which  divided 
itself  into  two  heads  :  namely,  whether  the  charter  had  been  so 
violated  as  to  ensure  a  forfeiture  ?  and,  if  so,  were  it  expedient 
>o  exact  the  penalty  ?  "  The  decision  of  the  first,"  said  Mr.  Ty- 
er,  "  would  preclude  me  from  an  inquiry  into  the  second.  For, 
sir,  inasmuch   AS   I  BELIEVE   THE  CREATION  OF 

c 


..^M 


'  :-iii 


i'i^lj. 


'     : 


18 


THIS  CORPORATION  TO  BE  UNCONSTITUTION- 
AL, I  cannot,  wUBaut  a  violation  of  my  oath,  hesitate  to  repair 
a  breach  in  the  Constitution,  when  an  opportunity  presents  itself  of 
doing  so  without  violating  the  public  faith" 

"  There  remains  now  but  one  branch  of  inquiry  with  those 
who  do  not  think  the  creation  of  this  bank  an  unconstitutional 
act,  viz.,  Is  it  expedient  to  direct  a  scire  facias,  or,  in  other  words, 
to  put  down  this  corporation  ?  I  contend  that  it  is.  For  one,  I 
enter  my  protest  against  the  banking  system  as  conducted  in  this 
country :  a  system  not  to  be  supported  by  any  correct  principle  of 
political  economy,  *A  gross  delusion,  the  dream  of  a  visionary : 
a  system  which  has  done  more  to  corrupt  the  morals  of  society  than 
anything  else  ;  which  has  introduced  a  struggle  for  wealth,  instead 
of  that  honourable  struggle  u)hich  governs  the  actions  of  a  patriot, 
and  makes  ambition  virtue  ;  which  has  made  the  husbandmar.  spurn 
his  cottage,  and  introduced  a  spirit  of  luxury  at  variance  with  the 
spirit  of  our  institutions.  I  call  upon  the  warm  advocates  of 
banking  now  to  surrender  their  errors.  Shall  I  take  them  by 
the  hand  and  lead  them  through  the  cities  1  Bankruptcy  meets 
us  at  every  step,  ruin  stares  us  everywhere  in  the  face.  ShaU  I 
be  told  of  the  benefits  arising  to  commerce  from  the  concer  Mira- 
tion of  capital  ?  Away  with  the  delusion  :  experience  has  expo- 
sed its  fallacy.  True,  for  a  moment  it  has  operated  as  a  stimu- 
lus ;  but,  like  ardent  spirit,  it  has  ^'''oduced  activity  and  energy 
but  for  a  moment;  relaxation  has  followed,  and  the  torpor  of 
death  has  ensued.  When  you  first  open  your  bank,  much  budtle 
ensues  :  a  fictitious  goddess,  pretending  to  be  wealth,  stands  at 
the  door,  inviting  all  to  enter  and  receive  accommodation.  Splen- 
did palaces  arise — the  ocean  is  covered  with  sails — but  some  al- 
teration in  the  state  of  the  country  takes  place,  and  when  the 
thoughtless  adventurer,  seated  in  th(  midst  of  his  family  in  the 
imaginary  enjoyment  of  permanent  security,  sketches  out  to  him- 
self long  and  halcyon  days,  his  prospects  are  overshadowed,  and 
misery,  ruin,  and  bankruptcy  make  thei:  appearance  in  the  shape 
of  bank  curtailments.  If  this  be  true,  and  I  appeal  to  the  knowl- 
edge of  all  men  for  its  truth,  I  demand  to  know  if  you  can  put 
down  this  system  too  soon  V 


M 


19 


*•  I  entreat  gentlemen  to  arrest  the  evil  now  that  they  lan. 
Sir,  I  was  astonished  at  the  argument  of  the  honourable  gentleman 
from  South  Carolina.  He  contende  d  that  the  great  object  of  the 
charter  had  been  answered ;  that  every  facility  had  been  afforded 
to  the  operations  of  the  treasury ;  and,  therefore  .Hat  no  forfeiture 
had  ensued.  What  is  this  but  to  say  to  the  Bank,  Take  care  to  be 
only  the  glove  to  the  hand  of  the  treasury,  facilitate  its  schemes 
and  operations,  and  do  whatever  else  you  please,  you  shall  not  be 
arrested  ?  Swindle  and  cheat,  deceive  the  unthinking  people  of 
this  country,  without  mercy  and  without  end ;  only  take  care  to 
secure  the  smiles  of  the  treasury,  and  all  shall  be  smooth  and  well. 
Is  it  not  actually  granting  the  Bank  a  patent  to  offend  ?  It  is 
only  necessary  that  it  should  apply  at  the  patent-office,  and  receive 
its  license  under  the  sign-manual  of  Dr.  Thornton.  I  cannot  lis- 
ten to  such  a  position.  I  call  upon  the  warmest  advocates  of  this 
system,  although  I  am  satisfied  that  that  call  is  in  vain,  to  unita 
with  me  in  this  measure.  You  have  been  disappointed  in  your 
wishes — in  our  expectations.  Instead  of  a  system  abounding 
in  blessings,  it  has  been  converted  into  an  instrument  of  corrup- 
tion. Cold,  unfeeling  speculation  has  usurped  the  place  of  hon- 
est dealing.  Are  we  not  too  young  to  encourage  such  a  state  of 
things  ?  Our  republic  can  only  be  preserved  by  a  strict  adhe- 
rence to  virtue.  It  in  our  duty,  if  we  consult  our  eternal  good,  to 
put  doum  this  first  instance  of  detected  corruption,  and  thereby  pre- 
serve oiirselve.'!  from  its  contamination.  This  Bank  is  already  i/j- 
terwoven  wiih  the  affections  of  many :  its  influence  will  become  every 
day  more  and  more  extensive.  If  we  suffer  this  opportunity  to  es- 
cape, we  may  sigh  over  our  unhappy  condition,  but  that  will  be  the 
only  privilege  which  will  be  left  us.  Let  my  fate  be  what  it  may,  I 
hove  discharged  my  duty,  and  am  regardless  of  the  con^  'quences.'" 

Having  thus  given  a  brief  exposition  of  lii^  con- 
duct and  sentiments  on  tlie  Bank  question,  let  us 
glance  at  his  course  on  the  other  great  topic  of  the 
times,  the  Tariff. 

In  forming  the  Compromise  Act  of  1833,  all  the 
great,  patriotic,  and  leading  minds  in  political  life 


^mttt^i'. 


j#»W* 


■^■■■'-■■^'■^:,i 


W- 


\h^\ 

^  ■;|. 


20 


were  zealously  engaged,  and  happily  succeeded  in 
"  dissipating  the  gloom  that  hung  upon  the  country." 
It  is  well  known  that,  before  this  fortunate  idea  was 
hit  upon,  the  friends  of  an  ultra-protective  system 
were  urging  matters  to  a  great  extremity,  and  forcing 
the  Southern  States,  and  particularly  South  Caro- 
lina, into  an  attitude  of  almost  open  resistance  to 
the  Union.  Mr.  Tyler,  distressed  to  see  his  country 
distracted  by  such  dissensions,  and  feeling  the  most 
intense  anxiety  for  its  restoration  to  peace  and  har- 
mony, made  an  eloquent  speech  in  the  Senate,  in 
which  he  gave  a  most  able  exposition  of  the  nature 
of  our  government,  the  basis  of  its  organization,  the 
provisions  of  its  Constitution,  and  the  spirit  of  its 
institutions,  and  was,  in  fact,  thejirst  to  suggest  the 
very  plan  of  Compromise  which  was  afterward  so 
happily  adopted.  Opposed  to  a  Tariff  merely  for 
protection  of  domestic  industry,  but  in  favour  of  a 
Tariif  for  revenue  which  may  incidentally  afford 
such  pro'.ection,  he  appealed  to  the  South  for  the 
necessity  of  the  latter,  and  to  the  North  for  the  re- 
linquishment of  the  former,  saying : 

"  K.o  (Mr.  Tyler's)  mode  of  preserving  the  Union  was  by  re- 
storing mutual  corif.dence  and  affection  among  the  members  ;  by 
doing  justice,  and  obeying  the  dictates  of  policy.  The  Presi- 
dent has  pointed  out  the  mode  in  his  opening  message.  We 
had  been  informed  that  there  was  an  excess  of  $6,000,000  in 
the  treasury.  I  would  destroy  that  excess,  yet  I  would  not 
rashly  and  rudely  lay  hands  on  the  manufacturer,  if  I  had  the 
power  to  do  so.  While  giving  peace  to  one  section,  I  would  not 
produce  discord  in  another.  It  would  be  to  accomplish  nothing, 
to  appease  discord  in  one  section  and  produce  it  in  another. 


'.a 


21 


The  manufacturers  desire  time — give  them  time — ample  time 
If  they  would  come  down  to  the  revenue  standard,  and  abandon 
the  protective  policy,  I  would  allow  them  full  time.     I  present 
these  suggestions,  for  I  am  anxious  to  see  this  vexed  question 
adjusted." 

Here  we  find  the  basis  of  the  Compromise  Act 
first  suggested  by  Mr.  Tyler,  and  afterward  so  hap- 
pily matured  by  the  Senate. 

It  has  been  usual  to  ascribe  to  Mr.  Clay  the  chie. 
merit  of  accomplishing  this  great  conciliatory  meas- 
ure, so  happily  hit  upon  at  that  critical  juncture ; 
but  though  hs  is  entitled  to  the  praise  of  having  aid- 
ed it  with  all  his  influence,  the  credit  of  originating 
it  belongs  to  Mr.  Tyler;  and  it  is  believed  that  his 
brilliant,  and  eloquent,  and  patriotic  speech  in  the 
debate  in  the  Senate  on  that  occasion  produced 
more  eff"ect  upon  that  distinguished  body  than  any 
other  of  the  speeches,  and  led,  more  than  anything 

else,  to  the  glorious  results  whose  benign  inhu ces 

are  felt  to  this  day. 

The  delicate  position  in  which  the  proposed  en- 
actments would  have  placed  South  Carolina,  and 
the  fatal  influence  they  would  have  had  upon  the 
sovereignty  of  the  states,  as  guarantied  by  the  Con- 
stitution, aroused  all  Mr.  Tyler's  chivalrous  and  gen- 
erous emotions,  and  called  forth  all  the  resources  ot 
his  vigorous  mind  to  defend  that  great  palladium 
of  our  liberty.  We  have  not  room  for  his  logical 
argument  and  sound  exposition  of  this  important 
subject,  but  can  only  make  a  few  extracts.  Speak- 
ing comparatively  of  the  two  systems  of  govern- 
ment, he  says : 


« 


.,jmiA^'>^v 


mmm 


m 


•J 


v         I 


t 


22 


"  Ml .  President,"  said  he,  "  if  any  man  would  run  a  compari- 
son between  a  federal  system,  such  as  we  have,  and  a  consolidated 
system,  he  could  not  fail  to  express  his  warmest  admiration  at 
the  beauty  of  the  first.  When  I  contemplate  the  difference  be- 
tween them,  it  has  struck  me  with  astonishment  that  any  portion 
of  this  Union  should  desire  to  see  a  consolidated  government  es- 
tablished on  the  ruins  of  a  federal  republic — that  beautiful  sys- 
tem, which,  if  truly  canied  out,  was  calculated  to  render  us  the 
happiest  and  most  powerful  people  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 
He  could  compare  it  to  nothing  so  properly  as  the  solar  system. 
It  was  the  sun  (the  Federal  Government),  giving  light,  heat,  and 
attraction  to  the  planets  revolving  round  it  in  their  proper  orbits. 
No  two  could  come  in  contact  with  each  other ;  they  rolled  on 
in  ceaseless  splendour  so  long  as  they  preserved  the  course 
pointed  out  by  the  Constitution.  It  was  impossible  for  them  to 
come  into  collision  either  with  the  government  or  with  each  oth- 
er so  long  as  they  were  confined  within  their  proper  orbits. 
The  people  of  the  states  were  attached  to  the  state  governments, 
to  whom  they  looked  for  protection,  and  to  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment, which  guarantied  the  safety  of  tht  whole.  The  state 
governments  exercise  a  paternal  sway :  they  regulate  the  do- 
mestic concerns,  prescribe  the  ruies  of  property,  the  punishment 
of  crimes,  the  internal  police,  and  throw  the  a;gis  of  protection 
over  the  family  circle.  To  this  are  confided  the  great  powers  of 
peace  and  war :  the  sword  and  the  purse  are  here.  Power, 
however,  often  forgets  right.  The  states  act  as  sentinels  upon 
the  watchtower,  to  give  the  alarm  on  the  approach  of  tyranny ; 
and,  being  organized  into  governments,  stand  ready,  after  all 
other  measures  shall  fail,  and  the  only  alternative  is  sk.  ''ry  or 
resistance." 

Alluding,  in  his  peroration,  to  South  CaroHna,  he 

says: 

"  But  regard  it  as  exclusively  a  South  Carolina  question, 
what  prevents  you  from  yielding  to  her  wishes  1  Pride 
«lone  stands  in  the  way — false  pride    It  is  the  worst,  the 


!'  lis  • 
(•  >"',l  i'  f 


•^'t 


23 


'I 


most  pernicious  of  counsellors.  Against  its  influence  Lord 
Chatham  and  Edmund  Burke  raised  their  voices  in  the  Brit- 
ish Parliament ;  but  the  reply  was,  that  it  would  not  ('  iO 
make  terms  with  revolted  colonies ;  and  a  besotted  minis- 
try lost  to  the  English  crown  its  brightest  jewel.  I',  is  idle 
to  talk  of  degrading  government  by  yielding  terms.  This 
government  is  strong — South  Carolina  weak.  The  strong 
man  may  grant  terms  to  the  weak,  and,  by  so  doing,  give 
the  highest  evidence  of  magnanimity.  All  history  teems 
with  instances  of  the  evils  springing  from  false  pride  in  gov- 
ernments. Bruised  thrones,  dismembered  empires,  crushed 
republics — these  are  its  bitter  fruits.  Let  us  throw  it  from 
us,  and  try  the  efficacy  of  that  engine  which  tyrants  never 
use :  that  great  engine  which  would  save  Poland  to  Russia, 
Ireland  to  England,  and  South  Carolina,  not  as  a  province, 
with  her  palmetto  trailing  in  the  dust,  but  as  a  free,  sover- 
eign, and  independent  state,  to  this  confederacy — the  engine 
of  redress.     This  is  my  advice. 

"  But  my  advice  is  disregarded  :  you  rush  on  to  the  con- 
test ;  you  subdue  South  Carolina  ;  you  drive  her  citizens 
into  the  morasses,  where  Marion  and  Sumter  found  refuge  ; 
you  level  her  towns  and  cities  in  the  dust ;  you  clothe  her 
daughters  in  mourning,  and  make  helpless  orphans  of  her 
rising  sons — where,  then,  is  your  glory  1  Glory  comes  not 
from  the  blood  of  slaughtered  brethren.  Gracious  God  !  is 
it  necessary  to  urge  such  considerations  on  an  American 
Senate  1  Whither  has  the  genius  of  America  fled  1  We 
have  had  darker  days  than  the  present,  and  that  /enius  has 
saved  us.  Are  we  to  satisfy  the  discontents  of  tbi*  people 
by  force  ;  by  shooting  some  and  bayoneting  others  "*  Force 
may  convert  freemen  into  slaves ;  but,  after  you  have  made 
them  slaves,  will  they  look  with  complacency  on  their 
chains  1  When  you  have  subdued  South  Carolina,  lowered 
her  proud  flag,  and  trampled  her  freedom  in  the  dust,  will 
she  love  you  for  the  kindness  you  have  shown  her  1  No : 
she  will  despise  and  hate  you.    Poland  will  hate  Russia  un- 


'!ti': 


24 


i 


■ft; 


ir 


til  she  is  again  free  ;  and  so  would  it  be  with  South  Carolina. 
I  would  that  I  had  but  moral  influence  enough  to  save  my 
country  in  this  hour  of  peril.  If  I  know  myself,  I  would 
peril  all,  everything  that  I  hold  most  dear,  if  I  could  be  the 
means  of  stilling  the  agitated  billows.  I  have  no  such  pow- 
er :  I  stand  here  manacled  in  a  minority  whose  efibrts  can 
avail  but  little.  You  who  are  the  majority  have  the  desti- 
nies of  the  country  in  your  hands.  If  war  shall  grow  out 
of  this  measure,  you  are  alone  responsible.  I  will  wash  my 
hands  of  the  business.  Rather  than  give  my  aid  I  would 
surrender  my  station  here,  for  I  aspire  not  to  imitate  the 
rash  boy  who  set  fire  to  the  Ephesian  dome.  No,  sir :  I 
will  lend  no  aid  to  the  passage  of  this  bill.  I  had  almost 
said  that  '  I  had  rather  be  a  dog,  and  bay  the  mooTi,  than 
such  a  Roman.'  I  will  not  yet  despair :  Rome  had  her  Cur- 
tius,  Sparta  her  Leonidas,  and  Athens  her  band  of  devoted 
patriots ;  and  shall  it  be  said  that  the  American  Senate  con- 
tains not  one  man  who  will  step  forward  to  rescue  his  coun- 
try in  this  her  moment  of  peril  1  Although  that  man  may  nev- 
er wear  an  earthly  crown  or  sway  an  earthly  sceptre,  eternal 
fame  shall  wreath  an  evergreen  around  his  brow,  and  his 
name  shall  rank  with  thor->  of  the  proudest  patriots  of  the 
proudest  climes." 

Having  thus  exhibited  the  conduct  and  opinions 
of  Mr.  Tyler  while  he  was  a  representative  of  the 
people  in  their  various  deliberative  bodies,  let  us 
examine  the  sentiments  that  he  avowed  and  the 
pledges  that  he  gave  while  a  candidate  for  the  Vice- 
presidency. 

The  two  most  prominent  subjects  that  agitated 
the  country  during  that  canvass,  and  continue  still 
to  shake  it  from  one  end  to  the  other,  are  the  cur- 
rency and  the  revenue,  with  their  collateral  depend- 
ances,  a  National  Bank  or  Exchequer,  and  a  Pro- 


25 


tective  Tariff.  We  have  seen  that  Mr.  Tyler  had 
been  uniformly  opposed  to  the  charter  of  a  Na- 
tional Bank  on  constitutional  grounds,  but  admitted 
its  great  utility,  and  his  desire  that  the  Constitution 
should  be  amended  so  as  to  meet  the  exigencies  of 
the  country  in  this  respect.  He  voted  against  a  re- 
charter  of  the  Bank  in  1832,  and  never,  in  the  course 
of  his  whole  life,  had  he  said  or  done  anything  that 
could  be  tortured  into  a  doubt  in  his  mind  of  the 
total  inability  of  Congress,  under  the  Constitution, 
to  charter  a  bank  to  act  w^ithin  the  limits  of  the 
states  without  their  consent.  When  called  upon 
by  the  Henrico  Committee,  in  the  fall  of  1840, 
during  the  presidential  canvass,  for  his  opinions  on 
this  subject,  he  frankly  replied,  ♦*  There  is  not  in  the 
Constitution  any  express  '^rant  of  power  for  such 
purpose,  and  it  could  never  be  constitutional  to  ex- 
ercise that  power,  save  in  the  event  the  powers 
granted  to  Congress  could  not  be  carried  into  effect 
without  lesorting  to  such  an  institution ;"  and  re- 
ferred them,  for  a  more  full  exposition  of  his  views, 
to  his  speeches  and  vote  above  alluded  to.  Now 
we  put  it  to  every  candid  mind  to  say,  whether  an 
issue  could  be  more  fairly  put  before  the  people 
than  this  ?  Through  his  whole  life,  repeatedly,  in 
public  and  in  private,  in  his  speeches  and  conversa- 
tion, up  to  the  very  moment  when  the  votes  were 
cast  for  him  as  Vice-president,  he  had  invariably 
declared  that  no  power  was  granted  to  Congress  to 
charter  a  bank  to  act  in  the  states  without  their 

D 


• ::  V'l 


26 

consent ;  and  in  this  opinion  he  was  sustained  by 
General  Harrison,  for  he  used  the  very  words  of 
that  lamented  patriot  in  his  reply  to  the  Henrico 
Committee ;  yet  they  were  both  elected  to  their  re- 
spective offices  by  a  vast  majority  of  the  people  of 
the  United  States,  and  thus  had  the  very  best  evi- 
dence which  could  be  given  of  the  expectation  and 
wish  of  that  people,  that,  as  magistrates,  they  would 
be  governed  by  the  same  principles  which  they  had 
avowed  as  candidates. 

Yet  one  of  the  gravest  charges  in  the  long  cata- 
logue of  allegations  against  President  T^ler  is  that 
of  treachery  to  the  party  wluch  elected  him,  founded 
upon  his  veto  of  the  two  wretchedly  inefficient  Bank 
Bills  at  the  extra  session.  Now  we  have  shown,  in 
the  preceding  pages,  that,  throughout  his  whole  po- 
litical life,  Mr.  Tyler  has  been  an  unwavering  oppo- 
nent of  a  National  Bank.  Upon  this  point  there  can 
be  no  dispute.  His  sentiments,  often  avowed,  were 
known  to  the  convention  which  nominated,  and  to 
the  people  who  elected  him.  Nay,  his  hostility  to 
such  an  institution,  on  constiUitional  grounds,  was 
urged  upon  the  people  as  a  reason  for  his  support. 
In  an  address  made  to  the  people  by  a  State  Whig 
Convention  of  Virginia,  it  was  stated,  in  language  the 
most  emphatic,  that  his  uncompromising  hostility  to 
a  bank  was  one  of  the  strongest  inducements  for  the 
South  to  sustain  his  nomination. 

We  have  shown  that,  up  to  the  period  of  his  ac- 
cession to  the  presidency,  Mr.  Tyler  was  a  known 


«,  ^  J 


27 


and  uniform  opponent  of  a  National  Bank.  Con- 
gress convened  on  the  last  day  of  May,  less  than 
two  months  •after  the  death  of  General  Harrison. 
In  his  message  at  the  opening  of  the  session,  Mr. 
Tyler  avowed  his  readiness  to  co-operate  with  Con- 
gress in  all  measures  necessary  for  the  country,  and 
declared  his  determination  to  conform  his  action  to 
that  of  the  Legislature  in  all  cases  where  he  could 
reconcile  it  to  his  sense  of  constitutional  obliga- 
tion. 

Mr.  Clay  foresaw  that  the  establishment  of  a  bank, 
and  the  passage  of  the  other  measures  which  consti- 
tuted the  entire  policy  of  the  Whig  party,  with  the 
co-operation  of  the  President,  would  not  only  dis- 
arm him  of  weapons  to  contend  with  the  Democrats, 
but  very  possibly  place  Mr.  Tyler  in  such  a  position 
at  the  head  of  the  Whigs  as  to  make  him  a  danger- 
ous rival  in  the  contest  of  1844.  He  determined, 
therefore,  to  extort  a  veto  on  a  Bank  Bill,  and  thus 
separate  the  President  from  the  Whig  party.  At  an 
early  day  of  the  session,  he  procured  the  adoption  of 
a  resolution  by  the  Senate,  calling  upon  Mr.  Ewing, 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  his  devoted  friend, 
for  a  plan  of  a  bank.  The  plan  was  presented :  it 
was  Mr.  E  wing's  own,  with  the  exception  of  the  main 
feature,  the  assent  of  the  states  for  the  establishment 
of  branches,  which  was  incorporated,  as  known  to  be 
indispensable  to  the  executive  sanction.  The  call 
being  directly  upon  the  secretary.  President  Tyler 
did  not  interfere  with  the  details  of  the  scheme,  or 


28 


:Ji; 
1 


■  ■■i.:;!;' 


;(■     , 


:T* 


attempt  to  dictate  in  any  manner,  except  merely  to 
insist  upon  the  principle  of  assent  of  the  states. 

The  treasury  plan  was  contumeliotsly  spurned  by 
Mr.  Clay,  and  he  reported  to  the  Senate  a  bill  for 
an  oldfashioned  bank — a  bill  which  he  knew  the 
President  could  never  sign,  and  which  he  did  not 
wish  or  expect  to  become  a  law.  After  several 
weeks  of  discussion  and  management,  Mr.  Clay 
discovered  that  his  bill  could  not  pass  the  Senate 
in  the  form  reported.  A  senator  from  South  Caro- 
lina, and  another  from  Maryland,  both  friendly  to  a 
bank,  refused  to  vote  for  Mr.  Clay's  bill.  He  was 
greatly  incensed  at  this  contumacy,  for  he  appre- 
hended that  such  a  modijfication  as  was  necessary 
to  its  passage  might  secure  the  executive  sanction. 
Determined,  however,  to  carry  the  bill  without 
yielding  one  inch  of  substantial  ground,  without 
conceding  one  iota  of  principle,  he  set  about  devi- 
sing a  plan  which  should  obviate  the  objections  of 
the  senators  above  alluded  to,  and,  at  the  same  time, 
ensure  the  negative  of  the  President.  Mr.  Rives 
had  offered  an  amendment  providing,  as  a  condition 
precedent  to  the  establishment  of  a  branch  in  any 
state,  that  the  consent  of  the  Legislature  should 
first  be  obtained.  This  was  rejected  through  the 
influence  of  Mr.  Clay.  An  amendment  was  then 
prepared  by  Mr.  Clay,  authorizing  the  directors  of 
the  Bank  to  establish  branches  in  such  states  as  did 
not  express  their  dissent  at  the  then  next  session  of 
the  Legislature;  and,  in  case  the  Legislature  did  re- 


's* a 


29 


fuse,  then  Congress  might  authorize  the  estabUsh- 
ment  of  branches  wherever  the  public  interest 
seemed  to  require  them.  This  proposition  was  ex- 
hibited to  the  President  by  a  friend  of  Mr.  Clay 
before  it  was  offered  in  the  Senate.  Its  insidious 
character  was  manifest  to  Mr.  Tyler,  and  he  re- 
pelled it  at  once  as  unsatisfactory  and  unfair,  and 
as  evading  the  true  question  at  issue ;  and  he  avow- 
ed his  preference  for  the  original  bill,  as  bold,  direct, 
and  manly,  while  this  professed  compromise  was 
Jesuitical  and  inexplicit.  Having  ascertained  that 
this  proposition  could  not  remove  the  President's 
objections,  and  affecting  to  consider  it  as  a  liberal 
and  generous  concession,  Mr.  Clay  procured  its 
adoption.  The  bill  was  passed,  and  sent  to  the 
President.  It  was  returned,  with  the  objections  of 
the  executive,  and  so  far  Mr.  Clay's  plans  were 
successful.  His  wish,  as  avowed  in  the  Senate, 
was  to  adjourn  without  any  farther  effort  to  obtain 
a  bank,  and  go  before  the  people  on  the  question. 
But  his  friends  overruled  him  in  this  instance.  An- 
other bank  was  planned  with  a  view  to  another 
veto,  and  Mr.  Clay  concurred  in  its  passage  with  a 
knowledge  that  such  would  be  its  fate,  and  in  the 
expectation  that  it  would  render  the  breach  between 
Mr.  Tyler  and  the  Whig  party  final  and  fatal. 
The  veto  came,  and  the  cabinet  was  dissolved  at 
the  dictation  of  Mr.  Clay,  and  in  the  hope  that  the 
President  would  be  unable  to  constitute  another, 
and  would  thus  be  without  the  means  of  carrying 


'^i 


30 

on  the  government,  and,  perhaps,  be  forced  to  re- 
sign. But  the  scheme  failed.  President  Tyler 
found  men  honest,  patriotic,  and  able  to  supply 
the  places  of  the  retiring  members,  and  the  ma- 
chinery of  the  government  was  not  impeded  for 
an  hour.  Certainly,  with  these  facts  before  them, 
a  generous  and  intelligent  people,  even  dilFering  in 
sentiment  from  President  Tyler,  will  cease  to  blame 
him  for  not  suffering  himself  to  be  entrapped  in  the 
"heading"  snares  that  were  so  insidiously  laid  in 
the  patli,  and  refusing  to  sign  bank  bills  into  which 
clauses  and  provisions  were  purposely  and  unneces- 
sarily thrust,  that,  in  his  estimation,  not  only  viola- 
ted the  Constitution,  but  expressly  contr.ivcned  the 
pledges  upon  which  he  came  into  power. 

It  is  apparent,  then,  to  every  reflecting  mind,  that 
there  must  have  been  soine  secret  reason,  independ- 
ent of  the  merits  of  the  bnr;k  measure  itself,  which 
induced  the  Whig  majorit'  in  Congress  to  persist 
so  pertinaciously  upon  encumbering  it  with  a  pro- 
vision authorizing  the  establishment  of  branches  in 
the  states  without  their  consent,  when  no  one  was 
ignorant  that  such  provision  rendered  it,  in  the  opin- 
ion of  the  President,  unconstitutional.  Whence, 
upon  any  other  supposition,  the  extraordinary  infat- 
uation which  led  the  leaders  of  the  Wliig  party  to 
break  with  the  President  upon  a  point  so  trivial, 
and  sacrifi-^e,  for  so  futile  a  purpose,  all  the  fruits  of 
their  great  victory  \  Why,  with  the  fact  staring 
them  in  the  face,  that  not  a  single  subscriber  would 


% 


31 


have  been  found  for  the  stock  of  the  new  bank 
with  the  most  propitious  charter,  and  with  the  car- 
cass of  the  old  bank  festering  in  its  corruption  be- 
fore them,  and  tainting  the  very  air  they  breathed, 
did  they  press  upon  the  President  the  cruel  aherna- 
tive  of  being  unrighteously  denounced  as  a  traitor 
for  defeating  a  party  measure,  or  signing,  against 
his  convictions  of  duty,  a  provision  in  that  measure 
forcing  the  Bank  upon  the  states,  while,  if  it  really 
was  desired  by  the  people,  or  even  the  party,  that 
provision  was  entirely  unnecessary,  since  consent 
could  be  granted  by  a  simple  vote  1  A  rational  ex- 
planation for  conduct  so  singular,  for  sacrifices  both 
of  party  and  public  interests  so  enormous,  is  to  be 
found  only  in  the  view  we  have  taken.  It  is  only 
in  the  poisonous  shade  of  personal  ambition  that 
such  vast  interests  wither  and  perish.  It  is  only  at 
the  shrine  of  personal  aggrandizement  that  such 
hecatombs  are  sacrificed.  It  is  the  same  spirit  that 
has  kept  the  leaders  of  the  Whig  party  in  Congress 
aloof  from  the  President  from  the  beginning,  and  led 
them  to  treat  him  with  coldness  and  distrust.  From 
the  moment  of  his  succession  to  office,  and  espe- 
cially from  the  time  when  the  bank  vetoes  gave  them 
some  pretext  for  such  conduct,  the  whole  body  of 
Whig  members  of  Congress,  almost  without  excep- 
tion, have  repelled  all  his  advances  of  kindness, 
withheld  themselves  studiously  from  his  presence, 
heaped  upon  him  all  sorts  of  contumely  in  public 
debate,  vihfied  him  through  their  obsequious  presses, 


t 


..*•! 


M 


I:;!;;-' 


!      t 


32 

treated  all  his  measures  for  the  public  good  with 
contempt,  and  absolutely  recused  to  give  his  admin- 
istration any  sort  of  countenance  or  si^pport.  How 
long  will  he  be  required  t^^  *^ear  such  indignities  ? 
and  how  long  could  ne  be  expected  to  close  his 
miud  against  suspicion,  when  a  leader  in  the  con- 
spiracy *5ven  avowed  the  express  intention  of  "head- 
ing"' him,  by  forcing  the  Bank  Bill  before  him  with 
this  obnoxious  provision?  Is  this^  the  kind  of  treat- 
ment he  had  a  right  to  expect  from  them,  not  only 
as  citizens  and  gentlempn,  but  partisans  and  pru- 
dent tacticians?  Purely,  if  a  party  were  bent  on 
destruction,  they  could  not  have  resorted  to  surer 
means,  though,  doubtless,  they  are  blinded  to  that 
result  by  the  infatuation  of  their  personal  idolatry 
for  Mr.  Clay. 

It  was  reasonable  to  have  anticipated  that,  during 
the  recess  after  the  extra  session,  the  Whig  mem- 
bers of  Congress,  having  had  time  for  reflection, 
would  have  retraced  their  steps,  repaired  th.,  errors 
of  the  past,  and  manifested  a  wiser  forecast  for  the 
future.  An  opportunity  for  reconciliation  was  of- 
fered by  the  President,  with  the  utiuobt  singleness 
and  sincerity  of  purpose,  in  his  opening  message  at 
the  regular  session,  in  his  proposition  for  an  Ex- 
chequer, and  in  the  general  tone  and  sentiments 
of  that  able  paper.  But  how  was  it  treated  ? 
Though  the  Exchequer  plan  was  adjnittert  hy  all 
sound  business  men  to  be  just  what  the  country 
wanted,  it  was  coatumeliously  smothered  in  the 


1.4': 


33 


JT 


committee-rooms ;  its  author  was  treated  with  the 
same  studious  coldness  and  distrust  as  before  in  pri- 
vate life,  and  vilified  with  the  same  violent  abuse  in 
public  debate,  and  the  quarrel  was  aggravated  into 
an  irreparable  breach.  The  supply  bills,  demanded 
by  the  exigencies  of  the  public  service,  were  delay- 
ed, carped  at,  and  reduced  to  the  most  parsinionious 
basis;  and,  to  crown  all,  the  Revenue  Bill,  which  was 
to  be  the  fountain  of  these  niggardly  supplies,  was 
poisoned  by  the  introduction  of  an  incongruous  and 
fatal  ingredient,  which  it  was  well  known  would 
render  it  unfit  for  use,  and  force  the  President  to  its 
rejection.  Tue  distribution  of  the  proceeds  of  the 
public  lauds  was  a  measure  which  met  the  appro- 
bation of  the  President  at  a  time  wh'in  the  treasury 
was  full  and  unembarrassed,  and  no  necessity  exist- 
ed of  raising  for  its  supply  the  tariff  of  duties  above 
twenty  per  cent.  Circumstances  make  a  measure 
expedient  at  one  time,  when  a  change  of  circum- 
stances rendt  c  it  inexpedient  at  another ;  and 
such  a  change  had  been  so  far  foreseen  and  pro- 
vided for  in  the  distribution  law  itself,  that  it  was 
made  to  declare  that  distribution  should  cease 
as  joon  as  it  should  become  necessary  to  raise 
the  duties  above  the  rate  heretofore  mentioned. 
Besides,  the  Compromise  Act  of  1833,  which  all 
the  patriotic  statesmen  of  the  time  united  to  send, 
with  healing  on  its  wings,  over  this  great  empire 
of  vastly-diversified  interests  and  conflicting  sen- 
timents, contemplates  a  permanent  reduction  of 


Ksm/Bma 


34 


l:|- 


■;l' 


the  duties  to  twenty  per  cent.,  and  an  increase 
would  be  justified  only  by  the  sternest  necessity, 
after  all  the  available  resources  of  the  government 
had  been  found  insufficient  for  its  support.  The 
very  Congress  that  sent  this  bill  to  the  President, 
requiring  distribution,  although  they  raised  the  du- 
ties above  twenty  per  cent.,  is  the  same  one  that 
but  a  short  time  before  sent  him  the  Distribution 
Bill,  with  a  clause  requiring  that  distribution  should 
cease  if  the  duties  were  raised  above  that  rate ;  and 
because  he  dared  to  maintain  his  consistency  of 
opinion,  while  they  had  no  respect  for  their  own, 
they  loaded  him  with  reproaches,  and  endeavoured 
to  make  him  odious  with  the  people  for  adhering 
to  the  very  sentiments  they  themselves  were  the 
first  to  adopt,  as  they  were  the  first  to  abandon. 
Other  serious  objections  existed  to  this  bill,  strange- 
ly compounded  of  revenue  and  appropriation.  It 
united  subjects  that  had  no  affirity,  and,  if  allowed 
to  grow  into  a  precedent,  would  introduce  into 
our  national  legislation  the  system  of  log-rolling 
which  has  brought  many  of  the  states  to  the  brink 
of  ruin  in  its  connexion  with  their  system  of  internal 
improvements,  and,  as  the  President  well  observes, 
cannot  fail  to  prove  "destructive  of  all  wise  and  con- 
scientious legislation."  Indeed,  the  reason  openly 
avowed  for  introducing  the  distribution  clause  into 
the  Revenue  Bill  was,  that  the  measure  could  not 
be  carried  without  the  aid  of  the  friends  of  distri- 
bution ;  and  who  does  not  see  that  this  is  the  same 


r: 


35 


principle  which,  blending  wise  and  foolish  projects 
into  the  same  category,  started  railroads  and  canals 
in  regions  where  they  never  will  be  wanted,  in  or- 
der ,0  carry  forward  those  that  are  unquestionably 
useful,  leaving  all  of  them  unfinished,  impoverishing 
the  treasury,  and  destroying  the  public  credit? 

We  have  thus  shown  conclusively  the  truth  of 
the  propositions  with  which  we  set  out,  and  devel- 
oped the  foul  conspiracy  of  which  it  has  been  at- 
tempted to  make  President  Tyler  the  victim.  What- 
ever may  have  been  his  claims  heretofore  to  popular 
favour ;  whatever  predilections  niay  have  been  felt 
for  other  distinguished  individuals,  or  whatever  pre- 
tensions they  may  possess  to  the  highest  office  in 
the  gift  of  tlie  people,  surely,  if  we  know  anything 
of  that  people,  we  can  confidently  say  that  the 
claims  of  President  Tyler  will  not  be  regarded  by 
tht^m  as  having  been  diminished  by  these  extraor- 
Ciunry  transactions. 

i  'le  events  of  the  late  session  of  Congress  are  too 
(tihj  m  the  minds  of  the  people  to  require  recapit- 
ulation. The  studious  and  continued  indignity 
heaped  upon  President  Tyler  by  the  National  Le- 
gislature has  already  awakened  the  popular  repro- 
bation, notwithstanding  that  almost  every  avenue 
to  the  public  mind  was  preoccupied  by  his  unrelent- 
ing enemies.  But  the  progress  of  truth,  though 
slow,  is  certain,  and  the  scores  of  presses  that  have 
spontaneously  sprung  up  in  behalf  of  the  administra- 
tion in  every  section  of  the  country  will  soon  dissi- 


If: 


36 


•■I-  ■i; 


(      t 

♦ 


i 


pate  the  foul  slanders  that  have  been  circulated 
against  him. 

The  pure  and  unflinching  democracy  of  Mr.  Ty- 
ler is  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  his  political 
life.  His  den^orracy  is  not  that  of  party,  but  of 
principle:  not  ;  j'ng  with  the  whim  of  the  day, 
but  stable  as  the  iv  ,;  of  ages;  not  subservient  to 
popular  clamour,  but  firm  to  the  public  good  ;  self- 
sacrificing,  conscientious,  unfaltering,  devoted,  hear- 
ty, and  consistent.  It  is  a  democracy  which  will 
protect  the  people  agaiDst  the  consequences  of  sud- 
den popular  ebullitions;  and  around  which  they 
may  safely  rally  in  cases  of  doubt  and  distress,  in 
periods  of  darkness  and  error,  and  in  times  of  tumult 
and  confusion.  It  is  a  democracy  to  which  the 
people  may  look  with  safety  in  the  midst  of  distrac- 
tions occasioned  by  sectional  jealousies,  and  con- 
flicts resulting  from  selfish  aims  of  personal  aggran- 
dizement; and  it  is  a  temple  of  refuge  to  which 
they  may  fly  and  be  protected,  when  those  dissen- 
sions threaten  the  peace  of  the  country  by  the  mad 
spirit  of  partisan  warfare.  It  is  a  democracy  which 
stands  immovable  while  popular  feeling  is  sway- 
ing to  and  fro,  but  to  which  that  feeling,  sooner  or 
later,  will  finally  come  as  sure  as  the  needle  must, 
ultimately,  point  to  the  pole.  By  the  standard  of 
that  democracy  he  has  always  stood  firm :  un- 
daunted by  the  attacks  of  its  enemies,  and  undismay- 
ed by  the  desertion  of  its  friends ;  chosen  always 
to  bear  it  at  the  head  of  their  ranks  as  their  favourite 


37 

leader,  when  the  people  shake  off  their  delusion,  and 
return  again  to  their  duty  with  their  accustomed 
cheerfulness  and  vigour.  That  time  is  now  at  hand. 
The  people,  distracted  by  ambitious  and  designing 
demagogues ;  tired  of  selfish  leaders,  who,  by  ignus 
fatuus  lights  of  false  democracy,  have  betrayed  them 
into  the  swamp  of  error  and  the  slough  of  despond, 
and  beholding  with  mingled  admiration  and  regret 
the  statesman  and  patriot  who,  on  high  and  lofty 
ground,  is  watching  the  beacon-lights  of  liberty  and 
grasping  the  banner  of  pure  democracy,  are  hasten- 
ing rapidly  to  his  side,  and  will  soon  exhibit  an  ar- 
ray that  will  daunt  the  hearts  of  his  enemies,  re- 
store the  failing  confidence  of  the  country,  and  re- 
establish its  prosperity  and  happiness  upon  a  firm 
and  immutable  basis. 

Mr.  Tyler's  Uterary  efforts  evince  genius,  attain- 
ments, and  accomplishments  of  the  highest  order. 
To  purity  of  taste,  elegance  of  diction,  and  strength 
of  reasoning,  he  superadds  the  ornaments  of  a  lively 
fancy,  and  a  copious  command  of  impressive  and 
striking  images.  His  eulogy  on  Jefferson  is  decided- 
ly the  best  that  was  pronounced  on  the  death  of  that 
illustrious  man;  and  his  address  at  the  Randolph 
Macon  College  exhibits  to  great  advantage  his  high 
classical  attainments,  his  refined  taste,  and  his  su- 
perior talents  as  a  chaste  and  elegant  writer.  It  is 
rare  to  find  such  accomplishments  surviving  the 
rough  ordeal  of  political  strife  ;  and  when  they  are 


s  I  Mx  uitmrnmussm^:^ 


iftM-^ 


If  $ 

I      I'    I 


I 


■•:•-( 


38 

seen,  they  never  fail  to  command  admiration  and 
attract  regard. 

Not  only  is  Mr.  Tyler  one  of  the  most  elegant 
writers  in  the  country,  but  he  is  also  one  of  its  most 
fluent,  eloquent,  and  brilliant  orators.  In  happy,  off- 
hand, extemporaneous  speaking,  he  has  seldom  been 
equalled,  and  in  more  laboured  and  extended  efforts 
he  has  but  few  rivals.  While  a  senator  in  Con- 
gress, he  took  an  active  and  prominent  part  in  all 
the  debates,  and  was  uniformly  listened  to  with  great 
attention  and  profound  respect.  His  manner  is  im- 
pressive on  all  occasions :  affable  in  social  inter- 
course, forcible  in  forensic  efforts,  and  eloquent  in 
public  debate. 

Having  presented,  briefly  and  imperfectly,  some  of 
the  most  prominent  events  and  most  striking  pecu- 
liarities in  the  history  and  character  of  John  Tyler, 
we  appeal  to  you,  the  people  of  the  United  States, 
to  say  whether  you  will  sustain  your  public  servants 
in  maintaining  consistency  of  character,  integrity  of 
heart,  and  firmness  of  purpose,  when  assailed  under 
the  most  trying  circumstances ;  whether  you  will 
sanction  the  attempt  to  reduce  your  chief  magistrate 
to  the  mere  tool  of  a  dictator  in  the  Senate ;  wheth- 
er you  will  justify  a  few  party  leaders,  under  the 
control  of  such  a  dictator,  to  prolong  your  sufferings 
merely  to  spite  a  rival  for  your  favour,  and  to  sport 
with  your  great  interests  as  mere  pawns  in  the  game 
for  the  presidency !  Will  you  suffer  those  leaders, 
if  determined,  in  their  idolatrous  zeal,  upon  self-im- 


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39 

molation  under  the  Juggernaut  car  of  party,  to  drag 
with  them  under  its  crushing  wheels  all  those  inter- 
ests, and  even  the  glorious  Constitution  itself?  Will 
you  see  the  ruthless  tyranny  of  an  inexorable  major- 
ity, not  of  the  people,  but  of  their  representatives 
merely,  trample  down  the  rights  of  all  who  may  dif- 
fer from  them  in  opinion,  and  sacrifice  the  welfare 
of  all  parties  to  the  trickery  of  maintaining  their  as- 
cendency and  furthering  the  pmbitious  projects  of 
their  favourite ;  and  thus  succeed  in  reducing  this 
great  North  American  Republic  to  the  condition  of 
its  South  American  neighbours,  with  whom  the  ma- 
jority of  to-day  is  the  minority  of  to-morrow,  and 
both  alike  are  reckless  of  the  general  good,  and  stain- 
ed alike  with  the  best  blood  of  their  country  1  Are 
you  prepared  to  submit  to  an  oppression  more  fatal 
than  the  despotism  of  the  autocrat  of  Russia — a 
despotism  which  affects  masses  rather  than  individ- 
uals, and  which,  if  it  does  not  send  the  offender  to 
the  deserts  of  Siberia,  converts  the  whole  country 
it  misgoverns  into  a  waste  far  more  desolate  and  far 
more  deplorable  !  If  parties  in  this  country  go  on 
nmch  longer  as  they  have  done  for  the  last  few 
years,  you  will  soon  have  occasion  to  regret  even 
your  independence :  under  the  lash  of  present  evils, 
you  will  sigh  for  even  those  of  the  past ;  under  the 
sway  of  ignorant  and  heartless  demagogues,  you  will 
pray  for  the  inore  quiet  rule  of  barons  and  of  kings ; 
with  industry  paralyzed,  and  the  product  of  your 
fields  rendered  worthless  by  selfish  party  legislation 


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and  party  broils,  you  Vlll  have  little  to  boast  of  over 
those  despotic  countaicd|k'whose  territories  are  laid 
waste  by  the  private  feUds  and  ambitions  projects  of 
contending  princes ! 


THE    END. 


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